


And It Goes (It's Golden)

by ladycobra



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: AU, Adult baby, Age Play, Baby!Louis, Cuddling & Snuggling, Diapers, Fluff, Gen, Infantilism, Littles Are Known, M/M, Non-Sexual Age Play, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pacifiers, bottles, child!Zayn, the agency is government run, they control who gets a little and who don't, toddler!Niall
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-07
Updated: 2016-11-14
Packaged: 2018-08-29 17:33:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,961
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8499007
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladycobra/pseuds/ladycobra
Summary: Louis wakes up one day, not in the comfy crib at the Agency, but in the arms of a stranger.  Life at the Agency was all he ever known but, now, Louis must adjust to a new life with his new daddies.





	1. one

_one_

—

“What is it, Uncle Harry?” The voice, loud and childlike, startled Louis from his slumber and he instinctively whimpered, reaching out blindly for something to hold on to as someone softly shushed him, jostling him and shifting him into a cradle as a large hand ran up and down, soothingly, across his tummy.

"It's a baby, stupid."

"That's not nice, Zaynie! Take it back!"

"No!" 'Zaynie' said, stubbornly.

“Zayn, that wasn't nice, apologize, and it's _who is it_ , Ni, not what is it,” A warm voice corrected, the one who held him, “This is Louis, your new baby cousin.”

“Baby?” The voice that woke him said with awe, “That mean I older?”

“That’s right, buddy, you and Zayn'll teach him everything you know, right?”

“Mhm!”

His mind was so fuzzy that the simple conversation confused him, he wasn’t even sure where he currently was but he was positive he wasn’t at the Agency. Louis squirmed, agitatedly, whining a bit as he tried to remember as much as he could — he remembered playing blocks with Elly last night before bedtime, then, being placed in his crib...he didn’t get a goodnight kissy, though, because Elly was busy last night since the Agency was ‘overcrowded’ and ‘understaffed’, at least, that’s what Elly said.

But now — now, he’s in the arms of _strangers_ , away from his nice crib and nice Elly and, and he doesn’t _like_ strangers — they could be mean and hurt his feelings like, like —

“Oh, baby, no,” The voice sounded distraughtand helpless, now, bouncing him up and down as Louis’ bottom lip trembles and his eyes began to water.

“Oh, babe, maybe he’s frightened.” Louis noted that this voice was different from the last two and it only made him let out a sob, confused at the amount of strangers that were surrounding him.

“Yeah, Uncle Harry, maybe he’s a-scared,” A blond, blue-eyed Little who looked a bit older than himself pops into his view and pats his tummy, “It’s okay, baby, I’ll take care ‘f you.”

"Maybe, he's scared of your face, Ni." The black-haired little (Zayn?) said, a frown on his face.

"Is not!"

“Harry, maybe, he doesn’t understand what’s going on,” The man on the right said, worried. “Try explaining what’s happening.”

The one holding him, ‘Uncle Harry’, looks distraught as he nodded, his green eyes landing back onto him, he cooed, “Hi, baby boy, my name is Harry, I’m one of your new daddies. My partner, Nick, and I just adopted you today, isn't that exciting!" Louis almost smiled at the happy tone that Harry was using but stopped at the last minute, reminding himself that strangers were _bad_ , "We’re very, very sorry you weren’t awake for that, must be so scary to wake up like this, hm?”

Louis looked up at him with wide, innocent eyes; with his head feeling fuzzy, he only comprehended half of what was being said to him. Reluctant to talk, he jammed two fingers in his mouth and sucked on them in lieu of a response.

Nick's eyes grew soft and offered him a smile, “It’s all okay, Louis, we’ll make it all better.”

But it wasn’t okay, he was _just fine_ at the Agency; he was treated nicely and had yummy food and fun toys to play with and he had a schedule. He didn’t _like_ change, especially change that happened so rapidly.

All he wanted, now, was Elly to scoop him up in her arms and cuddle him and tell him he’s the cutest baby on the planet, he wanted his stuffed pink monkey, aptly called Pinkie, that he could never sleep without. He wanted the icky feelings to go away.

As the emotions swirled inside him, turning ugly and dark, welling up to a point where he couldn’t take it anymore in his current headspace, Louis finally allowed the tears to freely fall and wailed.

—

Harry was pretty sure he was failing as a father so far, not only did his baby hate him but Louis just wouldn’t stop crying. In the last hour, the Little had turned red from all the exertion crying had on him, Niall was sitting on the couch watching him move about the living room with his fingers in his ears trying to block out the noise while Zayn, fed up with the crying, had hid in the kitchen and Nick looked as helpless as he did, standing near the doorway of the kitchen. 

“He hates us.”

“He doesn’t hate us, babe,” Nick immediately comforted him, moving forward to take Louis in his arms, the cries instantly turned into screeches at the movement, “He’s just having a hard time adjusting like any other baby would.” He called over the loud cries.

Harryknew he was right but it still broke his heart to see his baby so distraught and unhappy. They’d went early morning to go pick a Little, so excited to receive the coveted call saying they were approved to receive a Little, finally. Harry had wanted to cry and scream for joy simultaneously, instead they had quickly gathered the little supplies they had for when Niall and Zayn slept over and put it in a diaper bag and placed a sleepy Niall into his carseat and buckled Zayn next to him. 

By seven, they were walking through the age six to eighteen month nursery, the Littles still adorably asleep and that's when he had saw him; Louis was the third baby down, his body enclosed in a yellow sleep sack and sucking on a pacifier rhythmically — Harry’s heart had clenched and he had gripped Nick’s hand so tight. It was then he knew that this, this was his baby.

“Uncle Harry,” Harry snapped out of his reminiscing and turns towards the tentative voice on the couch, Niall looked up at him with wide eyes, “Is baby Louis okay?”

“Oh, yes, NiNi, he’s just having a hard day,” Harry immediately assured him, he glanced where Louis was still quietly crying all the while sucking on the collar of Nick’s shirt, Harry sighed, feeling useless, “Come on, baby, I’ll give you some juice while we wait for your daddy, hm?”

He smiled as the Little nodded enthusiastically, grabbing a hold of Harry’s hand as he’s led into the kitchen, Niall hops onto his booster seat and laid his head on the table, waiting patiently as he watched Harry move around the kitchen. Zayn didn't pay them any attention, just continuing his coloring at the kitchen table.

“Can I have a snack?” Niall asked.

“Sure, hon,” Harry muttered with a frown, moving to the fridge to see what he could make into a snack.

“Maybe, maybe baby Louis wants a snack, too?” Niall suggested with hopeful eyes.

Harry smiled at him as he brought over the tray of apple slices and leftover chocolate chip cookies from yesterday with a sippy cup of apple juice and a cup of milk for Zayn, placing them in front of both boys. 

“Thank you!” Niall chirped, Harry rolled his eyes in amusement as the Little ignored the fruit entirely and went straight for the cookies.

"Thanks, Uncle Harry," Zayn said, grabbing a cookie, as well.

Harry sighed in relief when Nick popped his head into the kitchen, giving him a thumbs up, he could admit to himself that he was scared more than anything that Louis might cry until it made himself sick.

“He fell asleep?”

Nick nodded, whispering, “He cried until he fell asleep, I’m going to put him down in the play pen.”

Harry nodded in agreement, the words only reminded him how unprepared they really were; they didn't even have a crib yet! It only made him feel even more insecure about being a father.

Harry sighed as the doorbell rang and Niall perked up, looking ready to bolt to the door.

“Stay,” Harry said with a quirk of his lips, “You know the rules, buddy.” Niall whined but stayed put as Harry made his way out of the kitchen to the door.

“Hello,” Harry greeted his best friend, Liam Payne, as he stepped back to let him in, “Sorry to call you back so soon,I know we usually take the boys for the weekend but our hands are kind of full at the moment.”

“Yeah, about that, you didn't tell me on the phone, what’s going on?” Liam asked, concerned, “Is everything alright?”

“The Agency approved Nick and I for a baby,” Harry breathed out, it still felt so surreal to him and just saying it out loud made it more tangible and real, “But he’s been having a hard time so far.”

“Oh, mate, congrats,” Liam said, grinning, he moved forward to give Harry a hug, “It's usually hard to be approved for a baby, like 3% or summat, I was hoping to get a call for a baby but instead I got Niall who's at 3 to 4 age range and Zayn is even older at 6-8 range. So, how's he been?”

“Well, Nick just put him down for a nap, he’s been crying for the last two hours and tired himself out, I think,” Harry gave them a sad look, “I think he hates us.” The words made his throat feel thick and his eyes watered as his heart clenched painfully.

“Oh, Harry, no,” Liam said, immediately shaking his head,“That isn’t it, at all. I think he’s just having a hard time adjusting.”

“That’s what Nick said, too,” Harry let out a watery chuckle, “I think it’s even more difficult for him because he was asleep while the whole adoption process was happening, technically he hasn’t even met us before we took him home.”

“That could be it, man,” Liam patted his back, firmly, “Don’t give up, just show him how good it’ll be here with you two.”

“Yeah,” Harry sighed.

“I’m guessing like every caretaker, you don’t have any supplies?” Liam asked with a wry smile.

Harry rubbed the back of his neck, “Yeah, not even a bloody crib, god, it makes me feel so stupid. We were so excited to get a call from the Agency but we didn’t even think to get any supplies.”

“Aren’t we all, though?” Liam shrugged, “Look, no caretaker is going to fill their house with baby supplies and baby-proof their house only to get Rejected by the Agency and face that heartbreak. It’s always best to wait until the call comes.”

“Uncle Harry,” Niall called from the kitchen, “Can we come out now?”

“Yeah, buddy, you can,” Harry quickly wiped his eyes, not wanting Niall or Zayn to see him distraught. The Little stumbled out the kitchen and his eyes lit up as he spotted Liam, Zayn followed behind him in a more sedated fashion.

“Daddy!” Niall squealed as he leapt into Liam’s arms and Harry thanked whatever intelligent design that made it possible for Littles to grow at least half of the average adult male, Niall was only 5’5 and Harry was positive Louis was even smaller. He was sure it would be impossible to carry Littles if they were the same height as their caretakers.

“Hey, baby,” Liam cooed, as he cuddled his son close, Harry felt the familiar shot of jealousy as he watched the two daddies interact with the toddler. He felt silly now, however, when he had his own Little just upstairs sleeping soundly.

"Hi, dad," Zayn greeted, formally, Harry shook his head at the child's attempt at maturity. Zayn was always way too serious for a Little.

"Hi, my other baby, c'mere," Liam reached out for his other son, ignoring the obliged groan Zayn released before joining the hug. Harry smiled sadly, hoping he will have that with his own Little soon.

“Don’t worry, H,” Liam said, obviously noticing the distressed frown on his face, “Everything will work out.”

He sure hoped so.

—

Nick flopped on the bed, exhausted as he listened to the soft breathing of his baby, every now and then Louis breathing stuttered a bit from all his crying but otherwise, he slept soundly.

“He’s still asleep.” Nick informed Harry, instantly, as soon as his husband stepped into their bedroom.

“Good, it was breaking my heart to see him cry so much,” Harry sat next to him on the bed, “What are we going to do, Nick? Usually, adoption is a joyous thing for everyone involved, it nothing like this.”

“Maybe, we might have to bring him back,” Nick reluctantly suggested, the thought had stuck in his mind as he soothed Louis; even with the disastrous  first waking up, he was a goner and was already attached to the little boy — the thought of separating from him pained him.

“We can’t, not for the first thirty days by law,” Harry sniffed, “I don’t think I can bring him back, though, Nick. I love him already.”

“I know what you mean but if Louis doesn’t want to be here, then —“ Nick cuts himself off, frustrated beyond belief.

“Maybe, we give him a compromise ?" Harry suggested, tentatively, "Like, maybe, show him how life with us would be better then in the Agency. If after thirty days, he still wants to go back, we’ll bring him back,” Harry looked at him with hopeful eyes, desperate to spend as much time with Louis as he could, Nick had the exact same feeling.

Nick nodded, “Yeah, that seems doable.”

Harry grinned, elated and leaned forward to give him a quick kiss just as Louis started stirring, small whimpers escaping as he woke up.

“Shh, baby boy, it’s alright,” Harry said in a soft and soothing voice, he stood up to move closer to the play pen next to the bed.

“Hey, there, angel,” Nick said with a smile, his eyes grew sadder as Louis opened his eyes to reveal fearful blue eyes, “Oh, no, it’s okay, baby.”

“Louis, we’re so sorry for scaring you. Let me explain again, we adopted you early this morning before you even woke up and it was really bad and naughty of us to just take you without even letting you know you were being taken.” Harry explained in a soft voice as he rubbed Louis’ tummy.

“We were just really, really excited to meet you,” Nick went on, “We couldn’t wait any longer but we'd like to make a pinky promise with you?" 

Louis blinked up at him in confusion, "Pwomise?"

"Yes, baby, a pinky promise that we could never, ever break," Nick nodded his head, "We pinky promise that if you be our baby for just thirty days and you still don't like it here, we’ll send you back to the Agency, how does that sound?”

There was a long, stretch of silence as Louis looked between the two of them before he nods, sticking his fingers into mouth as he extended his right hand and wiggled his pinky out as he muttered, “‘kay.”

Harry and Nick shared an elated grin as they both reached over the play pen to entwine their pinkies. Nick vowed to himself that he would make the next thirty days the best for his baby so he would never want to leave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EDIT (2/19/17) : Please note that I made a major change to the story. Zayn is now a Little, I repeat, Zayn is now a Little. Carry on.


	2. two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading, I'm glad you like it so far! Also, if there's anything you guys want to see, just tell me, I am open for suggestions!

_two_

—

“So, what’s this, then?” Harry looked over his shoulder with a sheepish grin at Nick’s incredulous stare, Harry could understand his bafflement, the usually neat, modern styled living room was a mess of clear plastic, bubblewrap and opened boxes of diapers, wipes and bottles littering the plush, soft carpet.

Harry could admit that he went a little overboard in his excitement on buying essentials when he decided to go down to the only Little store that was still open.

“I couldn't sleep, too excited to start the day,” Harry murmured, turning back to the dry erase white board he was currently writing out rules for Louis, “I went out to the store and brought some essentials like diapers, onesies and some bottles. We can go to Little’s Paradise and get everything else we need later on today.”

“It’s five o'clock in the morning, H,” Nick stated, flatly. He walked over to peer over Harry’s shoulder. “Can’t this wait until a more decent hour of the day?”

“Nope, but look at this,” Harry lifted the board up so Nick could have a better view of it, “I’m making a list of house rules for Louis. I have five, so far, but if you’d like to add on, feel free.”

“No, I think I'm fine, thanks, maybe when my brain is up and running I’ll be more helpful,” Nick placed a hand on Harry’s shoulder, placing a soft kiss on top of his curls, “H, I know you haven't slept yet. ”

“I'm just not tired, babe,”” Harry defended himself, frowning up at him. He knew Nick didn’t buy it when he lifted an eyebrow and snorted incredulously but otherwise remained silent. He turned to face his husband, grabbing a hold of his hands and giving him a kiss, "Nick, we have a baby.” Harry said, a board grin on his face.

Nick rolled his eyes, fondly, "I'm quite aware, babe."

Harry leaned against him, sighing happily, "I never thought I could be this happy but it feels like our family is more complete with him here."

Nick hummed, nodding his head,"I know what you mean."

“Um...H-Harry…”

The already familiar sweet, high voice of their baby jolted them from their stance. Harry's head snapped up, immediately, his eyes instantly trained on the spot where Louis stood at the last step of the stairs, hesitant.

“Louis, is there something wrong? How did you get out of the play pen, baby?” Harry was positive that the large play pen would keep the Little in, it was specifically designed to keep Littles from wandering around.

“That’s my fault, I put him on the bed since he was having trouble sleeping in the play pen,” Nick said with a grimace before he stepped forward, bending his knees so he could be more on the Little’s eye level, “now, sunshine, what’s the matter?”

Louis blushed, ducking his head, shyly, as he wiggled his toes nervously under their attentive eyes. Harry thought he was adorable, “I’m wet.”

Harry’s eyes widened as he slapped his forehead, horrified once the realization hitthat throughout the excitement of adopting the baby they had never changed Louis’ diaper from the one he was in since at the Agency. It made him feel so shitty and the lowest of low, how could he be so negligent?

He bit his lip, troubled by the fact that his Little had to inform them he needed to be cared for, he felt horrible. He just hoped that Louis could forgive them and no diaper rash would come out of the incident.

“Oh, angel, we’re so sorry; come on, I’ll get you nice and clean,” Harry said, reaching out for him.

Louis pouted for a moment as he thought it over but relented, in the end, when he took a hold of Harry’s hand. “Do I hav’ta go night-night aga’n?” He slurred his words as a yawned escaped him.

Harry bit back a grin as he watched Louis rubbed his eyes with a fist, “I’m afraid so. It’s too early, no?”

“Don’t worry, sunshine, once you’re really up, we can go shopping for lots of fun stuff.” Nick said, excitedly.

Louis shifted, nodding shyly, “Okay.” He squeaked in surprise as Harry closed the distance between them and scooped him up into his arms, patting his back gently to settle him.

"Louis, I know we haven't gone over the rules yet but one of your rules will be no going up and down the stairs without supervision. We don't want you falling, later after your nap we can go over the rest of your rules." Nick said, smiling as Louis nodded in understanding.

"Now, let's get you in a clean diaper," Harry said in a sing song voice, swaying side to side as Louis rested his head on his shoulder, a tiny hand came up to grab a fistful of his hair.

Harry found that he didn't mind.

—

It was only thirty minutes later that the doorbell rang, a melodic tone that rang lightly throughout the house, the soothing tone caused Nick’s heart to edge into his throat as he stood up and headed out the living room and towards the door.

Nick took a deep breath as his hand enclosed around the door knob, taking a moment to gather his nerves before he opened the door where a red haired woman stood stoically at the doorstep, a clipboard in her hands and glasses perched on her nose.

Nick greeted her warmly, "Hello, we've been expecting you.”

It was common knowledge that anyone who adopted a Little from the Agency would receive a house call the next day, it was standard procedure and it scared the crap out of Nick. He knew, for sure, it was this reason why Harry hadn’t slept last night — he couldn’t blame him, having a Little and having them taken away the next day was things out of his worst nightmare.

“Good morning, my name is Ruth, I'm an agent from the Agency. I will be representing the Little, Louis Tomlinson, age twenty biologically, age eleven months mentally.” Ruth said without skipping a beat, she stepped into the house without a word, examining the hallway that lead into the living room, silently. 

“Nice to meet you, I’m Nick Grimshaw, by the way.” Nick said, his stomach fluttered nervously. "My husband is just upstairs putting the baby down for a nap.”

"I'm here," Harry called out, breathlessly from atop the stairs, he rushed down, quickly, out of breath, "Sorry, we didn't know you were coming quite this early."

Ruth cleared her throat, "Of course, now, you must know by now that I am here to asses the living situation of Louis and to see if your home meets the standard requirements to house a Little."

Nick shuffled his feet, nervously, "Of course, you'll find everything is on par with the rule book."

"I should hope so," Ruth nodded, smiling kindly, “Now, gentlemen, our first priority at the Agency is that every Little is comfortable at their new home and the match is acceptable. Have you baby proofed the house, yet?”

“Not yet, but we're planning on doing it today.” Harry hurriedly added when Ruth frowned and wrote something down.

“Of course,” She said, simply. She moved past the living room, down the hallway and towards the downstairs bedroom were located, “How many bedrooms are in this house?” She asked, opening one of the doors and looking inside, critically.

“Five, three upstairs and two downstairs — we’re planning one for the nursery and another for a playroom for Louis.” Nick said, confidently, that was one thing they were confident about was the space; Louis would have enough space to anything his Little heart so desired. It was one of the reason why they brought such a large home with a backyard included.

“Acceptable,” She nodded her head, “now, will you be enrolling Louis into preschool?”

“We’re not sure yet, my husband and I both work so it would be great if we found a program for him. So, we’re just sorting through the best choices at the moment, though.” Harry replied.

Ruth nodded, shuffling through her papers for a moment before she pulled a specific one out and handed it to Nick, “Here is a list of four stars and above rating preschool and daycares, approved by the Agency, that focus on Little learning.”

“Thanks.” Nick nodded, tucking it under his arm.

“Now, here is Louis’ file which lists his age, height, weight, recent medical history, any allergies he may have and any personal background information you may need to know. I recommend you read it over.” She handed him a medium sized portfolio with a cute picture of Louis grinning up at the camera pasted on the top.

“You have an upcoming appointment with the Agency on September 30th, thirty days from now where we will assess if the Little has been treated well and if he wishes to stay with you. If he does not wish to stay, you will be Rejected and not allowed to receive a new Little for five years…Louis will be returned to us, as well. Is that understood?”

“Yes,” Harry swallowed, heavily. Nick nodded slowly.

“An agent will come to see Louis sporadically to see how well he’s settling into his new environment.”

"Okay." Harry nodded, more firmly this time.

Ruth smiled at him, “Now, it seems your house is well equipped to house a Little, however, it is not baby-proofed so an re-inspection is required."

Her eyes softened, sadly, as she watched both daddies deflate at her words. Nick knew what re-inspection meant — the Agency would take Louis until they passed the re-inspection which could take days or months. He shared a sad look with Harry as the devastation crashed into him at the full realization, “However, I am going to approve you as capable caretakers, so,all you need to do is sign this confirming that you're legally responsible for the Little, Louis Tomlinson, and I will be out of your hair.”

Nick blinked, shocked, that this woman was kind enough to do this for them, “Wait…are you serious?”

Ruth sighed, “Yes, I know, I shouldn’t be doing this but I can see how devastated you both were at my mention of an re-inspection. I know, from experience, they can take months and during that time you can’t see your baby. I, also, know caretakers have a need to care as much as Littles need guidance ingrained in their biology, so, denying you that seems awfully cruel and inhumane.” She wiggled the paper in front of their line of vision, “Now, please, do sign on the dotted line.”

Nick nodded, quickly, coming forward the same time as Harry was, Ruth chuckled as they bumped into each other . He gave Harry a sheepish grin and allowed him to go first, Nick felt he could breathe a little easier as he signed his name right next to Harry’s.

—

The next time Louis woke up, his tummy was grumbly and he was alone on the large bed in Nick and Harry’s room. He didn’t mind, though, the bed was soft with lots of fluffy pillows, he could spend the rest of forever on this bed! 

He sighed, contently, snuggling into the pillow under his head as he blinked, blankly, at the cream colored wall. He only debated for a fraction of a second whether or not the daddies could hear him before he was whining, his hunger outweighing his patience as he played, mindlessly, with his toes. 

  
He had the sudden desire to just go find the daddies, they were probably downstairs doing adult stuff but the daddies had told him he couldnt climb down the stair without superfission, it was on his no-no list and he wanted to be a good boy and good boys listened to their daddies.

“Oh, we’re playing with our little toesies now,” Louis looked up to the side to spot Harry just as he walked in, a large smile on his face and a bag slung over his shoulder. Louis couldn’t help but smile back; Harry had such a kind face, it couldn’t be helped that he automaticallyresponded to him as a Little.

“Hi, angel, did you sleep all right?” Harry said, gently, as Harry pulled him towards the end of the bed with a few tugs of his legs, “Let’s get you changed so we can have brekkie and, then, off to the store. I bet you’re hungry, hm?”

“Hungry,” Louis repeated, putting his thumb in his mouth, relaxing at the familiar motions of being changed, it calmed his frazzled nerves that some things haven't changed.

Louis was used to different people changing him from Elly, who was gentle, to Peter, who was rushed and professional. Louis didn't know what word to describe the way Harry efficiently changed his diaper but still pausing to pat his tummy each time he was finished with a step and kissing him on his head but it felt nice, it made him feel special.

Harry pulled out a soft, sleeveless yellow onesie that proclaimed him to be ‘the cutest bumblebee’ from the bag he’d walked in with and a pair of white socks, the caretaker smiled down at him as he pulled the onesie over his head, planting a gentle kiss on his fluffy fringe.

_Warm,_ Louis realized with a jolt as he looked up at his new daddy, _Harry was warm._

“I bet you are, angel, Nick made some yummy pancakes for us,” Harry said, gently laying him back so he could button up the onesie at his crouch before he took a pair shorts out and helped him stand so he could pull it up on him. The caretaker finally pulled away, nodding approvingly, “There, all nice and clean. Aren’t you the cutest baby?”

Louis smiled, shyly, from behind his thumb causing Harry to briefly frown before he reached up and gently pulled his thumb out of his mouth. Louis frowned, ready to put it back in but Harry smiled at him and said, “No icky fingers in your mouth, please.”

He whined, disliking not having anything in his mouth but didn’t put it back in, instead, wrapped his arms around Harry’s neck as he was picked up and placed on his daddy’s hip. Harry bounced him once as he walked out of the room, “I know, I know, Harry’s a big meanie, isn’t he?”

Louis wondered why Harry talked that way with him, it was kind of silly and he hid a slight smile that the weird talk forced out of him by burying his face into Harry’s shoulder, sighing when his caretaker ran a soothing hand down his back just as they descended down the stairs, turned a corner and arrived at the kitchen.

“Good morning,” Nick greeted, grinning, as he came forward to tickle under his chin causing him to giggle as Harry sat down, Louis made a surprised noise as he sat on Harry’s lap and not in a special seat like at the Agency, he was distracted from his confusion when Nick said, “I hope you like blueberry pancakes.”

Louis hummed, he did like pancakes, actually — Elly used to feed him yummy pancakes all the time for breakfast. It was his favorite and his mouth watered as the scent of the pancakes filled his nostrils. Once the plate was placed in front of him, he immediately reached over and grabbed a handful in his fist, syrup dripping down his arm and before either daddy could stop him, he already had it all in his mouth, chewing happily as he smeared syrup all over his face and his hair.

Nick laughed, heartily, “I take it you like pancakes, baby?”

Louis nodded, enthusiastically, he didn’t understand what was so funny to the daddies; pancakes were yummy! They were even better gooey and mushed in his hands.

Harry pressed a warm kiss against his temple which made him feel all warm inside. He leaned his back against Harry's chest wanting more of the attention and affection Harry was so willing to give, “Maybe, we should add bibs to the list, babe?” Harry said, laughter evident in his voice.

Nick’s eyes twinkled, “Good idea.”

Louis tuned out their conversation, finding their adult talk boring and uninteresting as the two daddies chattered quietly for the rest of breakfast time, Louis concentrated only on the yummy pancakes in front of him and the nice, fuzzy feeling that was bubbling inside him.

“All don’!” He chirped, happily, raising his plate in the air, he titled it the wrong way causing the syrup on the plate to slide off and onto the table making a messy puddle of syrup.

Oblivious to the mess he was making, Louis merely grinned up at Harry as the curly haired daddy showered him with praise

“Good boy, baby, you ate all your food,” Harry said in such a nice tone, it made Louis always want to be a good boy for his daddy.

Nick tutted, getting up to take a soft cloth, wet it a bit and came over to wipe his face. He automatically squirmed away from the offending wipe, whining.

“All right, little boy, I’m finished,” Nick shook his head, amused as he stole a quick kiss on the cheek and brushed his fringe away from his eyes, gently, “ready to go shopping?”

Louis frowned, kicking his feet out slightly but not saying a word as Harry rose to his feet, bringing Louis along with him. Louis eagerly snuggled closer to Harry’s warm embrace, that was one thing he didn’t mind in his new situation; Harry was always warm and snuggly he was coming to find.

“You have the diaper bag ready?” Harry asked, already heading out to the garage. There was bounce in his walk and excitement in his voice that Louis didn’t quite get, he didn’t think about it too much, instead, laid his head on his daddy’s shoulder and sucked on his thumb, the rhythmic sound of Harry’s heartbeat had his eyes to growing heavy.

Louis swore he closed his eyes for only a moment but the next time he opened them, he was being gently shaken awake by Harry who had a tight hold on him, he groaned burying his face into his daddy’s chest. His head was feeling fuzzy again, “No,” he whined as Harry opened the door and Nick took him, immediately. 

“We’re here, love,” Nick whispered in his hair, noticing he was awake, “Sorry, we don’t have a cars seat yet so, Harry held you on our way here. 

He merely grunted, peeking wearily up at the tall, colorful building — it had all the colors of the rainbow! — that proclaimed itself as ‘Little’s Paradise’. The building went up and up into the sky and Louis wasn't sure if it ever ended, he never seen anything like it before.

“Rainbo'!” He shouted, gleefully, pointing at the building.

“Yeah, sunshine, it’s a rainbow,” Nick replied, he turned to where Harry was just stepping out of the car, “Babe, can you get the diaper bag, please?”

“Got it,” Harry replied, raising the bag in the air before he slung it over his shoulder. “All right, let’s get started, we should start in the clothes aisle.” He said as he headed to the glass sliding door which automatically opened for them.

Louis gasped as Nick carried him inside the store, it was filled with people like him and daddies and mommies! It seemed as the store went on and on as Louis spotted an aisle for clothes, toys, baby equipments and baby supplies; he’d never seen anything like it before.

"Like me?" Louis whispered, his eyes trained on a Little girl a little taller than he was, who was being fed a bottle peacefully where comfy chairs and sofa was littered in a corner called ‘The Break Time Area’

"Yeah, sunshine, just like you," Nick replied, bouncing him once, "We'll find anything we need in here, this is a store just for Littles.”

Louis shifted, uncomfortably, suddenly feeling anxious as a mommy bumped into Nick as she rushed past, all of a sudden he wanted to find a quiet place to hide — he’d never seen so many people in his life, he felt as if his heart was going to explode and he buried his face into Nick's shoulder.

"Don't worry, sunshine, I’ve got you."

_Nick will protect me from all the strangers,_ Louis decided as he sucked on Nick's shirt collar _._

"Here's the clothes section," Harry said, pulling them along to where he was pointing. Louis didn't pay much attention to it, though, clothes were boring and he really wished they would leave already, despite the fact that they had only just arrived. 

“Hey,” Nick whispered, Louis looked up at him with wide, wet eyes, “Can you be a good, brave boy for us and we’ll get our shopping done real quick, okay, baby?”

Louis nodded, solemnly, wanting to be a good boy for his daddy and before he knew it, their cart was filled with all tons of stuff; huge empty crates were placed in the bottom and toys, crayons, diapers, clothes filled the entire cart to the brim. Louis eyes widened at the sight of all the plushies and fun toys that he'd spotted, shocked that it was all for him but it was only after thirty minutes that Louis didn't want to be a good boy anymore, he wanted to _leave._

"It loud,” Louis finally said, wincing at a terrible scream erupted from a Little acting up. "Go, now?" He watched as Nick placed mega blocks and a green play rug into the cart before pushing it forward.

"We're almost done, baby." Nick soothed, distractedly, looking through an assortment of pacifiers and putting some in the cart. "We still need to get you a crib and a car seat."

Louis frowned, not quite understanding why they couldn't leave _now_. They've been here forever and a day, he just wanted to go. He looked around,whining when he couldn’t find Harry anywhere near him anymore, how he wished his other daddy was here so he could cuddle.

He actively pulled away, disgruntled, when Nick showed him some pacifiers, one a ladybug and another one a blue elephant, "Which one do you like, sunshine?"

Any other time, he would be ecstatic to be choosing his own paci — at the Agency,he was allowed only one before but then, an older Little had taken it away from him, it had left him heartbroken. Now, Louis just wanted to slap the paci away, wanting to go home _not paci_ but that would probably hurt Nick's feelings and he didn't want to do that.

"I like ladybug," Louis said, eventually as he tugged on Nick's hair, “Go, _now_?"

"I know, sunshine, you're tired but Harry is picking up your car seat and we still have to look at cribs." Nick said, gently, he reached up to pry Louis' hand out of his hair.

Louis buried his head in his shoulder, his eyes filling with tears, he didn't like this place. It was scary, there were so many loud noises and people. “I don’t want to look at c-crabs!” he wailed causing a nearby Little to jolt in surprise.

Nick moved quickly through aisles, pushing the cart and holding Louis in his left arm, desperately trying to soothe his tears.

"Here we are, the cribs," Nick said, soothingly, and to Louis' panic and distress, placed him on his own two feet to stand next to him so he could look at the rows upon rows of different cribs. Nick kneeled down next to him and wiped his tears away with a swipe of his thumb, “Almost done, baby boy.” 

He sniffed, feeling a lot better when Nick kissed him on the nose but still pouted, stubbornly.

"Hello, sir, welcome to Little's Paradise. Do you need any help?" An assistant said, coming up to them out of the blue, Louis hid behind Nick’s back as he looked up at the stranger with wide eyes, startled. Nick stood back up.

"Yes, we're looking for a sturdy crib, mahogany and very good quality.” Nick said, hurriedly, keeping a his hand tightly around Louis’ shoulder, “I’m sorry but if you can show me the best ones that would be great, I’m kind of in a rush.” he nodded his head towards him which confused Louis. He didn't have a rash!

"Nicky," he tugged on the daddy's pants, "I don't have a, a rash."

"No, baby, _rush,_  it's means something different." Nick chuckled.

“Of course, well, we have a wide assortment of those kind of cribs but the best in our line is this newest model, mahogany finish, firm handles, and Little proof so no worries of Little trying to climb out and —“

Louis tuned everything else out, holding Nick's hand tightly as the daddy looked at the cribs and talked to the assistant. Instead, his eyes trained on the cart of pink stuffed toys that one of the workers was pushing past him, the toys reminded him of hisown stuffed toy, Pinkie.

How he wished he had Pinkie with him right now, Pinkie would know what to do, would scare away all the strangers near him right now. He frowned as the thought of his stuffy made his heart hurt and all of sudden he didn't want to be there anymore. He wanted to be with Pinkie, who wasn’t here but back at the Agency— 

Louis gasped as a sudden thought crossed his mind, what if Pinkie _was_ here? He remembered Harry saying that there were lots and lots of toys here that needed new homes so, maybe, Pinkie was brought here like he was, she could be alone on a shelf with no friend or anything, he had to go save her!

Louis didn't realize he had let go of Nick's hand until he had taken a few steps back, neither Nick nor the assistant noticed his absence as they discussed the quality of cribs, he continued to stumble back, hoping not to bump into anyone.

He'd be back.

He just had to go find Pinkie, Pinkie was very important and he couldn't leave her behind. He just couldn't.

He continued to walk backwards until Nick was out of his view.

"Wait, Mis’er," Louis whispered, toddling after the cart filled with the look-a-like plush toys as quickly as he could. Maybe, they would lead him to Pinkie.


End file.
